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The Way Under Our Feet: A Spirituality of Walking
Walking is one of the simplest things we do as humans. It’s how most of us experience life.
Graham Usher conveys how exhilarating it is to walk into the depths of our humanity. We become more ready to recognize the needs as well as the joys of others; we sift our thoughts; we seek to heal our battered world, even as we glory in the beauty of nature; we find ourselves companying with our three mile an hour God.
‘This is a lovely book, full of light, grace and meaning. Usher celebrates his passion for walking by exploring religious texts and stories, but this by no means confines his thoughts. We are drawn by secular texts, too: Macfarlane sits alongside Kierkegaard; Thoreau and Walden alongside T. S. Eliot. Through them all, we learn why walking is so unspeakably good for heart, soul and body.’
DAME FIONA REYNOLDS, MASTER OF EMMANUEL COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, AUTHOR OF THE FIGHT FOR BEAUTY
‘Wonderful. Offers highly original and striking observations combined with apposite, moving and often humorous personal anecdotes. A classic, catching a genuine and humble holiness.’
BISHOP DAVID WILBOURNE
Graham Usher conveys how exhilarating it is to walk into the depths of our humanity. We become more ready to recognize the needs as well as the joys of others; we sift our thoughts; we seek to heal our battered world, even as we glory in the beauty of nature; we find ourselves companying with our three mile an hour God.
‘This is a lovely book, full of light, grace and meaning. Usher celebrates his passion for walking by exploring religious texts and stories, but this by no means confines his thoughts. We are drawn by secular texts, too: Macfarlane sits alongside Kierkegaard; Thoreau and Walden alongside T. S. Eliot. Through them all, we learn why walking is so unspeakably good for heart, soul and body.’
DAME FIONA REYNOLDS, MASTER OF EMMANUEL COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, AUTHOR OF THE FIGHT FOR BEAUTY
‘Wonderful. Offers highly original and striking observations combined with apposite, moving and often humorous personal anecdotes. A classic, catching a genuine and humble holiness.’
BISHOP DAVID WILBOURNE
- GenresNonfictionSpirituality
192 pages, Paperback
Published April 16, 2020
14 people are currently reading
74 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 3, 2023
This review is for NetGalley in exchange for a free copy. Thanks for doing this, I am really glad I found this gem.
Let me begin by saying that this book was way beyond what I expected. At the risk of sounding cliché and a bit pretentious, it felt like "The Way Under Our Feet" was rather a journey than just a read to me. It took me longer than I imagined to finish this because
1. I did have to do some research about some of the stories from The Bible because I'm not Christian.
2. I wanted to take the time out and really let it sink in. Just like our author quotes Kosuke Koyama, I wanted to experience it "three miles an hour". It was a therapeutic read to me.
Everything in the world is so uncertain at the moment due to the Coronavirus pandemic situation. There is a lot of panic going around. Handling something like that is a little more difficult if you're someone with an anxiety disorder. This book really helped me manage my anxiety and slightly changed my perspective on life. It acted as a supplement to my therapy.
As a person that loves walking, especially away from the hustle and bustle of civilization, I completely agree with how much it can do to help an individual in reflecting and introspection.
I cannot particularly point out chapters that I loved or quote the highlights that made a difference, because there are just too many. My biggest takeaway from this book has definitely been a change in my fundamental thought process, in how I manage being anxious. Walking three miles an hour is walking for yourself, to reconnect with yourself. It helped me in acknowledging that sometimes, you have to slow down and observe and just be....
I cannot specify what I didn't appreciate in the book because it's the first of its kind that I have read and maybe it also has something to do with the time in my life that I came across it. But I will say this:
This is a book I will keep coming back to when I need to remind myself of all the lessons it taught me. I highly recommend it to anyone that wants to give reflective reading a try.
Let me begin by saying that this book was way beyond what I expected. At the risk of sounding cliché and a bit pretentious, it felt like "The Way Under Our Feet" was rather a journey than just a read to me. It took me longer than I imagined to finish this because
1. I did have to do some research about some of the stories from The Bible because I'm not Christian.
2. I wanted to take the time out and really let it sink in. Just like our author quotes Kosuke Koyama, I wanted to experience it "three miles an hour". It was a therapeutic read to me.
Everything in the world is so uncertain at the moment due to the Coronavirus pandemic situation. There is a lot of panic going around. Handling something like that is a little more difficult if you're someone with an anxiety disorder. This book really helped me manage my anxiety and slightly changed my perspective on life. It acted as a supplement to my therapy.
As a person that loves walking, especially away from the hustle and bustle of civilization, I completely agree with how much it can do to help an individual in reflecting and introspection.
I cannot particularly point out chapters that I loved or quote the highlights that made a difference, because there are just too many. My biggest takeaway from this book has definitely been a change in my fundamental thought process, in how I manage being anxious. Walking three miles an hour is walking for yourself, to reconnect with yourself. It helped me in acknowledging that sometimes, you have to slow down and observe and just be....
I cannot specify what I didn't appreciate in the book because it's the first of its kind that I have read and maybe it also has something to do with the time in my life that I came across it. But I will say this:
This is a book I will keep coming back to when I need to remind myself of all the lessons it taught me. I highly recommend it to anyone that wants to give reflective reading a try.
July 6, 2020
This book felt like it was perfectly aimed at me, tying together two of my favourite things, faith and walking. I’ve got into walking a lot this year, but I never really considered that walking has a spiritual side (apart from giving me time to listen to podcast sermons while I’m out and about).
In this book, we start off with a chapter titled ‘Movement’, describing how walking works, the mechanics of it and how it evolved. I wasn’t really expecting this, but it was actually a really great intro to the book.
We then go into other chapters like ‘Thinking’, ‘Remembering’ and ‘Going’. all built around the same theme, but with a different focus.
I don’t want to say too much about this book because I think if it sounds like something that may interest you, you should go out and read it, if only for pearls of wisdom like this one:
“If we lack love in our walk with another, even though we offer presence and openness, we will appear cold. Walking-with involves caring for the other deeply. It means seeking common ground so that we can move together instead of one of us walking ahead or behind.”
But although it sounds like it might be a fairly pedestrian read (pardon the pun), it wasn’t the easy-going book I thought it would be. Some chapters, like ‘Fearing’, were challenging to read. I often had to stop reading because it made me feel quite emotional, but the challenge of those chapters was necessary for a complete look at the topic.
I’ve never read a book about walking before, or indeed a book like this, but I appreciated the author’s way with words, how he was able to bring the book to life and keep me enthralled throughout. I’m so glad I picked this up!
“Even as we glory in the beauty of nature; we find outselves companying with our three-mile-an-hour God.”
Published on: https://emmaloui.se/2020/06/07/graham...
In this book, we start off with a chapter titled ‘Movement’, describing how walking works, the mechanics of it and how it evolved. I wasn’t really expecting this, but it was actually a really great intro to the book.
We then go into other chapters like ‘Thinking’, ‘Remembering’ and ‘Going’. all built around the same theme, but with a different focus.
I don’t want to say too much about this book because I think if it sounds like something that may interest you, you should go out and read it, if only for pearls of wisdom like this one:
“If we lack love in our walk with another, even though we offer presence and openness, we will appear cold. Walking-with involves caring for the other deeply. It means seeking common ground so that we can move together instead of one of us walking ahead or behind.”
But although it sounds like it might be a fairly pedestrian read (pardon the pun), it wasn’t the easy-going book I thought it would be. Some chapters, like ‘Fearing’, were challenging to read. I often had to stop reading because it made me feel quite emotional, but the challenge of those chapters was necessary for a complete look at the topic.
I’ve never read a book about walking before, or indeed a book like this, but I appreciated the author’s way with words, how he was able to bring the book to life and keep me enthralled throughout. I’m so glad I picked this up!
“Even as we glory in the beauty of nature; we find outselves companying with our three-mile-an-hour God.”
Published on: https://emmaloui.se/2020/06/07/graham...
April 7, 2020
Many thanks to Netgalley for the digital arc in exchange for my honest review!
Reading this was timely for me. I read it as the orders for more and more poeple swept across the world to try to control spreading the Covid-19 virus. Our normal activities suspended until further notice. So I walk a lot to keep up with my normal daily movement. And reading this has justified my thoughts that walking for exercise and walking for contemplation is just as equally important.
I especially loved the chapters on "Thinking" and "Accompanying" (but didn't really enjoy the chapter on "Movement" as it felt more technical and the two other mentioned chapters were poetically and philosophical.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves walking for different reasons, and for those who see no point in walking for exercise or contemplation.
(And such a beautiful cover!)
Reading this was timely for me. I read it as the orders for more and more poeple swept across the world to try to control spreading the Covid-19 virus. Our normal activities suspended until further notice. So I walk a lot to keep up with my normal daily movement. And reading this has justified my thoughts that walking for exercise and walking for contemplation is just as equally important.
I especially loved the chapters on "Thinking" and "Accompanying" (but didn't really enjoy the chapter on "Movement" as it felt more technical and the two other mentioned chapters were poetically and philosophical.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves walking for different reasons, and for those who see no point in walking for exercise or contemplation.
(And such a beautiful cover!)
December 14, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. As an avid walker since I was a child, this book encouraged me to be even more thoughtful about why I feel the need to walk and how walking is linked to spirituality (particulary pilgrimages and etc). I very much enjoyed the aspects of the book that called me to research the images and allusions-- it made the narrative multi-dimensional. However, I do think some of it was a bit Hallmark-y and less grounded than I normally like.
January 16, 2026
A thought provoking book, one which I was not expecting. I thought this was a book about spiritually rather than religion. The author thread together different concepts which are both thought provoking and funny at times. even if you aren't following a religious path it is still an interesting read.
April 7, 2020
As I like walking this book made me think about how walking can be a spiritual act and what it implies.
I liked it and will surely read it again because it's full of food for thought.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I liked it and will surely read it again because it's full of food for thought.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
August 30, 2024
Too much religion and not enough spirituality for me. I'm now working to remedy that with 'The Humanist Hiker'
August 29, 2025
Excellent! I enjoyed this book and will no doubt re-read and refer back to it often.
March 29, 2023
Thank you NetGalley for a free copy of this book. All views are mine alone. I must admit that the cover is what brought me to the book. I have never read a book about walking. That being said it wasn't just about walking, there were parts about how we humans walk. How our anatomy works. That was what intrigued me. It was definitely not a book I usually read and I found many parts interesting. The author could tell a good story unlike my review. At this time with all the media coverage of horrible things it was a comfort to read this book. To walk and feel peace with nature and my surroundings. It reminded me of what is important. Anxiety levels go down health improves with walking!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews